Roscoe the Bull is a monstrous sized bovine. He made his second annual appearance at our “RoundUp Sunday” outreach event a few weeks ago. But even more surprising than this long-horned rib eye carrier was the fact that my three year old son ran with all his might to be second in line to ride this thing. Dwarfed by the size of the cow, Eli kicked his heels in and commanded for the beast to move. With the assistance of the nose-ring and a trusted assistant, Roscoe followed orders and entertained the crowd and one proud little boy.
Watching my other sons enjoy the hundred foot parade of the bull, I thought to myself, “Here’s a creature that has lost his identity.” Growing up in a family that raised cows, we had some bulls with interesting temperaments. I heard many scary stories about family members getting on the wrong side of a bull in the pasture. This monster was to be feared. But not Roscoe, he is a gentle giant, to say the least.
When a bull uses it full strength, there is hardly a structure that can contain him. The Church, built upon Christ, can also be a formidable force. Through the Spirit of God, there is nothing that is impossible. There is nothing that can restrain her undivided focus, when she operates within the power of God alone.
God has given His people a mammoth-sized task, a seemingly impossible venture. We are to take the Gospel to everyone in the world, starting with our neighbors, family, co-workers, and the people we meet every day. But He has not charged us with the task and left us to devise the plan on our own.
When Jesus gave the final instructions to His disciples, He explained, “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you.” His power is not match by any other.
God has designed you to play a powerful role. A Christian who chooses to neglect the calling of God to share Christ with others is like Roscoe, a bull that acts like a pony. Followers of Christ have all the power in the world to affect lives for eternity. This is because the Holy Spirit of God is inside of each believer. He wants to work in world-changing ways. But He requires our obedience.
What if local churches were known in our community for being an organization that really cares for and reaches out to people? What if we all became missionaries to the lost people of our commuities? May it never be said that our potential in Christ was unrealized.
Are you New to this Blog?
I have a singular purpose for using this space on the Web:
If a church wants to make disciples of Christ, the leadership must have an “equipping” mindset. Through intensive research and extensive interviewing, I have discovered four equipping principles for ministry that are foundational and biblically-based. The model that has been developed is called “Spirit-led Connecting.”
You can read more about this model on the Spirit-led Connecting page.
Also, you can read more than 40 articles of various “equipping” topics (arranged in series) at the BiG IDEaS! link.
Shepherding Well 